


The infamous and dreaded school trip to Stark Industries

by Besidemyself



Series: Irondad & Spiderson fics that could be considered to happen in the same universe (working title) [3]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Avengers Tower, BAMF Pepper Potts, Gen, Minor Original Character(s), Minor Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Ned Leeds is a Good Bro, Not Beta Read, Peter is a Little Shit, Peter is a nerd, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Post-Spider-Man: Homecoming, Pre-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Precious Peter Parker, Stark Industries, Stark internship, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony is a good mentor, Tony is a little shit, Tony really tries to be a good Mentor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-24
Updated: 2019-08-24
Packaged: 2020-10-01 19:04:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20374477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Besidemyself/pseuds/Besidemyself
Summary: Of course they would visit Stark Industries, in the former Stark/Avengers Tower, sooner or later. It was common for this school to visit big tech and science corporations. And so far, Peter never had any luck with any school trip.---OrWhy does Peter even hope for the best possible outcome anymore?also:Tony is still a little shit but he also really tries.





	The infamous and dreaded school trip to Stark Industries

**Author's Note:**

> So I heard (more like read it) it‘s like a common thing to do this 'visiting S.I. with school' kind of story, so I wanted to try. I remember visiting a nuclear power plant, a wastewater treatment plant and a brewery and beside that only museums for school trips… so I can’t really compare (also I’m old). This is 100% pulled out of my butt. I’m just going to try to envision an amazing work environment (I've watched Far From Home - no spoilers in this story). 
> 
> Please excuse all mistakes and feel free to point them out
> 
> Disclaimer: No money is made with this story. All rights to Marvel & Sony.

Of course they would visit Stark Industries, in the former Stark/Avengers Tower, sooner or later. It was common for this school to visit big tech and science corporations. And so far, Peter never had any luck with any school trip. One time he couldn‘t go because he was sick, one time he broke his arm, one time he got lost in the zoo and one time he got bitten by a radioactive spider. So it just made sense that they would visit the tower.  
He had just really hoped that he would not have to go to S.I. while still attending school. He frequented the tower anyway, even if rarely the normal work spaces. Going there officially with his school couldn’t bring anything good.

He really didn’t want to go and considered to not give the permission slip to May. But, like the good, (quite) honest and really stupid boy he was he had shown the info paper and permission slip to his aunt, while also trying his best to argue about why she should under no circumstances sign it. Not that it helped. May had a very unique way to not let Peter skip anything school related.  
“What if someone figures out that I am Spider-Man while I’m at Stark Tower?!”  
Still Peter tried his best to argue as to why he should not go.  
But his aunt had none of it: “Peter, right now noone should be even slightly aware that you are the local hero. Or otherwise you’re doing his job wrong.”  
“May, please! It will be embarrassing!”  
“No it won’t. Why should it be?”  
“Y… You… You know why.”  
“No, I don’t. Why?” Something told Peter that she knew exactly why it could be embarrassing. He already was teased enough by the fact that he was an intern there. But he let it slide and moved to his next argument.  
“Why should I visit my ‘workplace’? I could just stay in school and learn!”  
“Peter, by that logic, the whole city is your workplace. So you rather stay in school than patrolling?”  
Damn!  
“Okay, forget that. But it will be boring! I mean, how can there be anything new for me?”  
“As if anything science related could be boring for you.”  
“My classmates will make fun of me!” He tried that angle again.  
“Peter, no. I’m sure it will be a pleasant experience to which you will think back fondly in the days to come. Memories made on school trips are so important for growing kids,” and with that she ruffled his hair and went into the kitchen to start dinner.

Peter rolled his eyes and huffed while falling on the couch, starting to pout. Yeah, memories. Memories like being bitten by a mutant spider. Or like breaking into the highest window of the Washington Monument to save his classmates. Beautiful, memories he will never forget.

Plan B didn’t work either. He failed to get sick even after taking a cold shower and then practically stripping on top of a skyscraper. And May did not believing his attempts of fake coughs.

So he was standing a week later with the rest of his group in the lobby of Stark Industries. Everyone was split in groups of around 15 kids, all having a nice looking person in a S.I. uniform standing with them.

“Okay, kids. Welcome to Stark Industries. I’m Eileen, your guide today,” a blond woman was smiling at them. “The tour will start in a viewing room with a movie about the history of Stark Industries. Then the groups will split again. We’ll start in the ‘Marketing and Public Relations‘ department, continue to ‘Purchasing’ and then the small branch of ‘Production’ here in HQ. We will then meet with everyone for lunch and finally we’ll go to ‘Development’ and ‘Research’. That should be the most interesting department for you. We’ll then briefly visit ‘Human Resources’, the ‘Legal’ department and finish with ‘Accounting and Finance’.”

Maybe it wouldn’t be so boring after all. Peter had visited Human Resources and the D&R department but not the rest. At least that's something new.  
Plus he hadn’t met Eileen before so she had no idea he was on the payroll of S.I..  
Plus Ned was in his group so that was amazing.  
Actually, maybe this could be an interesting and not embarrassing day at all.

“So, let’s get started!”  
Eileen gestured the group to follow her and walked together with the other guides and kids towards the viewing room.

The movie in itself started with the usual, S.I. teaser and then the well known information about the life of Howard Stark and his work while WWII. They all had seen it in history class as well at the history channel.

„Peter, when you met Captain America did he tell you about the war?“ Ned whispered, not really silent but hopefully silent enough so no one heard the question, because the movie was rather loud, showing an old recording of Howard introducing the first Stark Expo.  
„It wasn’t really a situation in which I could ask many questions. Now…,“ Peter gestured towards the screen. The story continued to how Obadiah Stane took over, after the death of Tony's parents, until Tony turned 21 and became the CEO.

„Does Tony Stark ever talk about his parents?“  
Peter shook his head and looked over to his best friend who had been doing this best to restrain his questions until now. A nagging feeling crept up to Peter, so he carefully looked around but no one seemed to care for his friend and him. So, he answered, whispering even more hushed.  
„No, and I‘m not going to ask,“ not when he knew the hurt so well himself.  
„Yeah, sure. Sorry.“  
Peter nodded and focused on the movie again that continued to the famous scene of Tony declaring that S.I. would stop with the production of weapons after his return from Afghanistan, the press conference at which he had declared that he is indeed Iron Man and the grand opening of the first new Stark Expo.  
„I was at the Expo the day of the attack, you know? My whole family had been there. It was so awesome but it had been a really close call. We left like two hours before the attack went down,“ Ned spoke up again. This time Peter nodded while he answered.  
„I‘d been there too! Maybe we met each other.“  
„Heh! Yeah maybe.“  
„That was also the day I met Iron Man the first time,...“ Peter grinned a bit at the memory even if he always had mixed feelings about that day.  
„What? Awesome!“  
Some angry “Shhh!”s and “Shut up!”s could be heard.  
Suddenly the known events of that day added up to a dull picture in Ned’s mind. „Wait… Tony Stark arrived there only shortly before the attack happened?“  
Peter nodded while watching the movie continuing the story about how Pepper Potts became CEO and how she now navigates the firm into a future of clean energy and affordable medicine.  
„So, you were there when the drones attacked and he…“  
„He saved me,“ Peters nodded, eyes still fixed on the big screen. „But I don‘t think he knows. Also I wore an Iron-Man mask.“ With a smirk Peter looked over to his friend. „I still have it.“  
„The dirty mask on your shelf? Dude, thats freaky!“  
„I know!“  
Both started to silently snicker. Finally the light went on and a couple of annoyed looks were thrown in their direction. They had probably been louder than intended. A surge of panic went through Peter but that was soon forgotten because a loud cheer and applause went through the pupils. At the front of the auditorium was standing the CEO of S.I. herself, Virginia Pepper Potts.

She waited for the kids to calm down before she started to talk to them.  
„Welcome, Midtown School of Science and Technology, to Stark Industries. It‘s a pleasure to have so many young and brilliant minds visiting us. I hope you‘ll enjoy the tour program we put together for you and that you‘ll learn a lot and also consider us as an employer one day.“  
The kids laughed at that. It was no secret that many dreamed of a job at S.I.  
„Before you start your tours we have a little time for questions.“  
A lot of hands went up and one of the tour guides brought a microphone to a girl.  
„Hi, yes! First, thank you very much for having us!“  
Everyone started to cheer again.  
Peppers smile was radiant: “Thank you for visiting. What is your question?“  
„Yeah. Uhm… I… I want to…,“ she took a couple of breaths clearly nervous but Peppers smile never wavered. “I‘m sorry. I‘m so nervous.“  
„I understand that, I am nervous too. It never gets better, no matter how much training you get. Take your time I‘m sure your question is great.“  
„Th… thank you Miss Potts! You‘re awesome! And I want to ask how it feels to be one of the most influential women in the world?“  
Pepper laughed at that, still smiling and nodding to the girl that sat down again, hiding her face in her hands.  
„I was right! That is a great question! Thank you very much. Well, it is hard to tell. I know that Stark Industries is taking part in forming the future of the world and as the CEO I have a lot to say about the how and when and that is amazing and sometimes scary. It‘s also really hard to wrap my mind around the fact but when I do have one of those moments in which I‘m aware, I feel incredible but I still struggle to believe it. And then work piles up again and I do my job. But yeah, all in all it’s amazing.“

Next was some boy who got cheered on by his friends.  
„Hi, Miss Potts. Big fan! And I know that Mr. Stark asked you first but would you marry me?“  
The whole room started to laugh except for Peter who groaned. He actually felt sorry for Pepper who had to endure his idiot classmates.  
But if anything Pepper was a pro and she laughed along.  
„It‘s very brave of you to ask this question but I have to refuse. I‘m happy with my current fiancé.“

The next question wasn‘t much better and Peters reaction was a gagging noise, that Ned chuckled along to. This time a girl again: „How is it to kiss Iron Man?“  
„Cold. Tony Stark is another thing,“ again everyone laughed and Pepper allowed a last question.

„Miss Potts, I’m also a big fan of your work. My question is the following,“ Peter perked up again, sharing a look with Ned. That was MJ. „How do you continue doing your work with the knowledge that Stark Industries only got so far with the construction and selling of weapons and follow up question, is S.I. actively trying to retrieve weapons that are still sold and used illegally?“  
“Wow, that is also a great question,” Pepper took a second to think about it.  
“The answer to the first part of your question is easier to answer. Even though the profit was made with money that can’t be called clean and is very much soiled with blood we try our best to do amends. We do that with giving a lot to different charities as well as our own foundations. We also focus on investing in clean energy and affordable medicine. We try our best to not redo the mistakes from our past and to create something better. A better future. As for the second part of your question it is one of Iron Mans long time goals to find and destroy every weapon that has been illegally sold by Stark Industrie. And he is actively pursuing that goal. But that is an individual decision and has nothing to do with the politics of S.I.“

The others in the room probably hadn‘t caught on but there had been an edge to Peppers voice at the end. Peter had only recognized it because he had heard it a couple of times now. Mostly when she and Tony ‚argued‘. Most of the time about what was going to happen with Iron Man and the fact that Tony just couldn’t stop creating new suits. Well Peter thought they were awesome.

“But Stark Industries does employ a team of professionals with all kinds of backgrounds, whom job it is to search for non-registered S.I. weapons. And if some are found, they work to retrieve those weapons. It is a sub-office of our legal department. I really hope that answers your questions.”  
She let her eyes go through the auditorium a last time. For a second Peter considered to wave at her but decided against it. No reasons to make a bigger fool out of himself than necessary.

“So, thank you once more for your time and I hope you all will have a fun and educational day here at Stark Industries,” under a lot of applause Pepper left the room, waving the audience and finally the lights went back on. It took the kids a few moments to find their guides.

As soon as the group had gathered again, Eileen started to lead them to their first destination.  
“Let’s get started. Please keep in mind, that all departments are rather small, compared to other facilities worldwide. As I said, we’ll first go to Marketing. There you’ll meet our PR people as well as the people who are responsible for many designs and advertisements. What is really unique about S. I. is the fact that almost all work for the company is done in-house…”

\---

Peter had never really been interested in marketing or Public Relations but that soon changed.The whole floor was awesome, colourful and filled with avengers merchandise. Heck there were even a few Spider-Man things. And the photo equipment especially peaked his interest. He’d never gotten around to join the photo club at school but maybe one day.

„And to finish our visit to the PR department, you all get a photo with Iron-Man!“ the woman showing them the department dramatically stepped aside, revealing a suit standing in front of a green screen. „That is, with his suit. It is here to be shot for an advertisement but let’s have some fun, shall we?“  
The photo session was a lot of fun.  
The kids could choose wacky costumes and wigs and other props. It was hilarious. Other stuff like clipart, sticker and backgrounds were added via computer.  
Finally it was printed out with a date and a thank you on the back, so everyone could take their poster home.  
Honestly, Peter had way too much fun with that was very excited when he got his poster.

“What are you going to do with yours?” Ned looked at his own creation with a lot of delight.  
“I’m going to write ‘Happy Birthday Mr. Stark’ on it and give it to him on his birthday. Hopefully he will be confused as to when we made that photo,” Peter chuckled, admiring the ‚#1 Spiderman-Fan‘ shirt the suit was wearing and his own delighted expression while pointing to it and shaking the suits hand.  
“You need to tape a video of it!”  
“Will do! Hey, if you give me your poster I’ll ask him to sign it for you.”  
„Awesome!“

While they still laughed about it, Peter had that nagging feeling again and turned to see a couple of girls from their group whispering with each other, one of them hasty looking away when she got caught. Peter really had a bad feeling and tugged Ned away to look at a wall full of Iron-Man fanart.

Maybe they should be more careful about their talks. So, Peter took care that they would follow last while the group walked to the next department. Theoretically everyone could and maybe should know about his internship but he would still feel weird if it was talked about right now.

\---

„Hey Peter, do you think we‘ll meet Mr. Stark?“  
Ned and Peter were looking at some examples of new metal alloy and other materials while a S.I. employee from the Purchase Department explained what they were looking for in materials for the different products and that they regularly did audits for their subcontractors and suppliers to guarantee human working conditions and fair trading. It was actually very interesting.

„No, I don‘t think so. He‘s only sometimes in HQ and he‘s at the Compound this week.“  
„So he won‘t come by and say hello to you?“  
Peter shook his head and smiled but without much humor. So far Peter had managed to not think about what would happen if Tony would actually appear in Stark Industries while they had their school trip. It was too unpredictable.  
„No. I mean, ideally he doesn‘t even knows I‘m here.“  
„Why is that?“ Ned really sounded confused. Normally Peter would be head over heels to meet his mentor. But instead he just shrugged because…. He just…  
„I have a bad feeling about it. I mean I didn‘t tell him and I didn‘t even want to come to this trip.“  
„What? But Stark Industries is so awesome! And… aren‘t you two somewhat close by now?“ Ned’s face was now downright confused. Which was very understandable. But all of this was very hard to pinpoint and to explain. There was just this feeling of dread about Tony being around when Peter was with friends. Again Peter shrugged.  
„I mean… I guess? But it‘s like…,“ he shook his head, trying to ignore the intense stare of his best friend.  
„I fear he would embarrass me, if that makes sense?“  
„Tony Stark? But he is like one of the coolest adults ever!“  
„Ehhh…,“ again Peter understood where Ned was coming from because it was true but at the same time Tony sometimes just was… well, Tony. And he did that thing that May also did, that many adults were prone to do, to embarrass someone. While being generally cool too. Normally it was fine because if Tony did it it was in front of Happy, Rhodey, Pepper or rarer Vision and May. And that was cool because they were cool adults too. And Peter would snark back and it was fine. But to imagine that in front of schoolmates?

„Well, yes. But he is different in private. We banter. A lot. And that… it’s fun. But… he would absolutely embarrass me in front of everyone...I think,“ because he couldn‘t be 100% sure. Wild card.  
They both were silent for a few moments, continue to listen about how Purchase was not only responsible for high technology materials but also for simple things like coffee and toilet paper, and how the amounts correlated. Everyone laughed at that and were allowed to ask questions.  
Suddenly, Peter had an idea how to explain.  
„Like, Ned. Do you remember your last birthday and how we all went to the Zoo and it was really fun but the next day you said how sorry you were because your dad was so embarrassing but no one else felt like that? I guess it‘s kinda like that with Mr. Stark.“  
Neds brows furrowed and again his face showed shocked.  
„What? Are you saying Tony Stark is like your dad?“  
“Ned! No!”  
He knew they had been way too loud when he felt the groups eyes on himself and Ned. It was worse that some of these eyes were more suspicious and less surprised. Like that group of girls from before who were standing not so far away from them.

Eileen kept her smile, even if a bit irritated while the employee who had showed them everything at this department just looked confused. Ned and Peter started to stutter out excuses, until Eileen held a calming hand up and gave them a charming smile.

“I know this excursion is very exciting for you, but please try to stay a bit more silent. Who knows when you’ll have another chance to talk to senior staff of Stark Industries, willing to answer all your questions? And if you don’t have questions yourself, I’m sure you understand that it is unfair to your peers if you disturb their experience. Don‘t you agree?”

Peter had to give the woman that she was incredibly good at implanting guilt, but it was so hilarious at the same time because if anyone was able to talk to the senior-est staff of them all, it was Peter. Even though he wasn’t quite sure if Tony did count as staff anymore… probably. But he had also talked to Pepper a couple of times and she was the frigging CEO, so that was that.  
And right now a lot of emotions fought in Peter’s head so he just nodded and dropped his head and was very thankful to Ned who took over.  
“Of course! We’re so sorry. We’ll keep it down! Sorry again for the disturbance!”  
“All right,” the guides smile was cheerful and she looked around at the rest of the group. “So, if you don’t have any more questions we should continue.”  
Eileen walked up front again, after saying goodbye to the people in the department.

Ned and Peter again followed last with some distance.  
“Seriously Ned, don’t say stuff like that! That is super weird!”  
“But,...”  
“No! Ned, stop.”  
He looked around to check if anyone is listening in, before he continued.  
“Listen, the last thing I need is people thinking that I am related to Mr. Stark. People already have a hard time believing me anyway. Imagine Flash hearing about that kind of rumor.”  
“Oh.”  
“Yeah…”  
  
And then there was the fact that Peter really didn‘t want to dwell on the whole father-figure thing. Not that Tony wasn‘t important to him and he would do everything to protect him but Peter would never give it a name because that meant inviting bad luck. And he had enough of that.

At least Ned was nice enough to not pry further and tried his best to change the mood again with gushing about how amazing everything was at S.I. was.  
They also passed two other groups, one with MJ who they complimented „Hey! MJ! Great question!“ - „Whatever. See you at lunch, losers.“ But the smile was evident. The other group was with Flash who of course shouted very loud „Hey, Penis! How is it to visit your ‚workplace‘?“ - „Shut up, Flash!“ - „Make me! Later, Nerds!“

Not shortly after that exchange and a travel via lift they reached the production department that was, compared to the other plants worldwide, small but still big enough to be impressive and to cause ‚oohh‘s and ‚aaah‘s.

A very excited man greeted them: „Welcome to the Production Department! We‘re only a small part of production. Compared to other facilities, worldwide. Many Items are produced in other countries, especially if the whole process including sales are for said country. Anyway, Let me show you around.“

Again Peter and Ned stayed behind and followed slowly. But soon the group of girls that had given them suspicious looks before waited for them and as soon as they reached the group, the girls started to walk with them.  
„Hey, you‘re Peter Parker, right?“ clearly the leader, a girl with straight brown hair, asked.  
Both Peter and Ned shared a look.  
„Yeah? That is my name.“ Every single word of his answer was dragged. He had a really, really bad feeling about this.  
„Some say that you are an intern at Stark Industries.“  
„That is true.“  
„Well, if you are an intern here, how come no one greeted you and you seem so surprised by so many things?“  
Well, time for some truth.  
„I‘ve only been to HR and D&R and some of the higher bureaus because I‘m Mr. Starks personal intern.“  
The girls-group faces were all a mix of sceptical but also surprised.  
Another girl with glasses and black hair shrugged: „Well, it would explain his friends weird questions and Parkers weird answers.“  
„My name is Ned. Ned Leeds. By the way.“  
The first girl ignored Ned and continued her questioning: „Then why did he not greet you, or something?“  
„Because he is a busy man and has business at the Avengers Compound this week.“  
„How convenient,“ a third girl with wavy blond hair in a ponytail interjected.  
„Yeah well, believe me or not. I don‘t care. Let‘s go, Ned.“

They both walked faster until they reached the rest of the group. The girls slowly followed, whispering among themselves. And even though Peter really had no intention to eavesdrop, he heard the conversation.

Girl 3: „I just want to say that it might be possible that he pulls all of his ‚information‘ out of his a…“  
Girl 2: „But he seems so sure about his story…“  
Girl 4, that had stayed silent so far: „As does his friend!“  
Girl 3: „Maybe he is convinced by his own story. Like you know. I mean, if it's true that he saw his uncle...“  
Girl 1; „Okay, there is no way to find out. But if someone recognizes him we‘ll have proof.“  
Girl 4: „And if not?“  
Girl 1: „No idea. I guess believe him or not. I won‘t.“

„Ugh,“ Peter scrunched his nose like he had smelled something bad. Was there no other gossip than his life?  
Now he almost wished that Mr. Stark would just appear and talk to him. Peter would probably regret it right afterwards but it would also be pretty amazing to see these girls and Flashs faces.

He started to listen in to the employee that showed them the department about how the things that D&R thought up and the materials that got chosen by Purchase would come together in Production, so amazing things were created. It was almost completely automated, controlled by an A.I. that was monitored by F.R.I.D.A.Y, another A.I. programmed by Tony Stark himself.  
“But that does not mean that we don‘t need human workers too. When we now walk along this glass bridge to look down at the assembly line you’ll see staff constantly checking the lines and mechanics.”  
The kids walked along the mentioned glass pass that gave them the chance to look down and they indeed saw the staff in dust-tight coats waving up to them and they waved back.

Suddenly, Peter felt his phone vibrate, which was unusual, since there was only a hand full of people to even contact him. It showed a message from Pepper: ‘Hey, Peter! I hope you have fun. Sorry I couldn’t say hello personally but I also wasn’t sure if you would like that. See you soon! Best wishes, Pepper.’  
That made Peter smile and he showed the text to Ned who also smiled.  
Even if those girls and Flash were the most annoying people on earth, at least he and Ned knew the truth.  
He typed a message back: ‘Hello Miss Potts. It’s fun so far. Your speech and answers were awesome! Thank you all for having us here! See you soon!’

“All right, everyone!” Eileen’s voice rose a bit. “Who is hungry?”  
A couple of hands shot up and she nodded, smiling. “Then we’ll continue the tour to the cafeteria, where we’ll have lunch.”

\---

Peter had been in the cafeteria before. The food was great there and he kind of looked forward to it. A couple of S.I. employees were also doing their break, chatting with some of the kids or typing away on their Tablets.  
The boys got themselves something from the menu, which was a wide variety of healthy food, freshly prepared. It didn’t take long and both Ned and him found Michelle and sat down at her table, who for some reason had managed to keep everyone else away. As always she ignored them, instead wrote in a notebook, while carefully eating her salad.

“The food is so much better here than in school. I guess for that the whole day is worth the trouble. Plus it hadn’t been that bad till now,” Peter bit in his sandwich.  
Ned nodded in agreement, mouth full too.  
“‘That bad’? What had happened?” MJ didn’t even look up but after all the time they had hung out together now, Peter could distinguish the real interest in her question.  
“Just some stupid girls, not believing that I am Mr. Starks intern.”  
“Well, their loss.”  
“Exactly!” Ned agreed. “It’s actually great to have someone on the inside who can tell all the real stories.”  
“Sure. It can always be good to have some inside-information. Like, are the answers correct that Miss Potts gave?”  
“Don’t ask him about Miss Potts and Mr. Stark kissing. He gagged when she was asked that question,” Ned laughed about his remark while MJ finally looked up with a mix of amusement and concern and Peter groaned.  
“Because it’s weird!”  
“Yeah, right. Good thing I wanted to know more about the smart question.The one I asked.”  
“Haven’t you been to the Legal Department yet?” Peter took another bite from his sandwich.  
“Not yet. That is our next stop. But didn’t you say you have inside-information? Give me something to work with, Parker.”  
Peter wrecked his brain, trying everything he had heard about illegal S.I. weapons: “What Ms. Potts said is true.”  
“So, Mr. Stark is sometimes taking a day off to kill weapon dealer?”  
That made Peter start to sweat, feeling dread again. What kind of question was that? Was it because of the question, that panic crept up on his neck? Had to be.  
“I won’t answer that.”  
“Well, then I’ll ask him myself.”  
„W… what?“  
The feeling of dread and panic became even stronger and a couple of things happened simultaneously. Peter watched MJ nod towards the entry of the Cafeteria, Ned mumbled an excited „Dude!“, a message from Pepper flashed on Peters phone and the normal happy chatter of his schoolmates first became silent to then turn into an almost painful mix of shouting and screeching. It made Peter flinch but he also turned around to the doors and to his horror Tony Stark was standing right there. Happy, not looking happy, beside him. Even the S.I. employees started to slightly panic and to whisper shout.  
„Dude! I thought he wouldn't be here!“ Ned was very excited about this turn of events.  
„Oh. No.“

Maybe Peter should just concentrate on the positive aspects.  
No one would ever question that Peter knew Mr. Stark ever again. Because Tony frigging Stark actually shouted Peters name and waved at him and then started to walk towards the table he had occupied with his friends, ignoring everyone else.  
To which Peter waved back, eyes large, full of panic and dreading everything that would follow.

„Hey, Peter! How are you doing? Enjoying your day as a visitor?“  
„I… I, I, I… yes?“ He probably looked like a fool, staring up to his Mentor like he saw him the first time. It did not help that the whole room was watching them.  
„Is that an answer or a question?“ with that Tony had laid his hand on Peters shoulder, giving him a smirk and for some reason that actually helped Peter to ground and focus.  
„An answer. It had been fine until now,“ Peter finally stood up, giving a polite smile and nod to Happy that immediately vanished again when he turned back to Tony, who let his hand drop and put it in his pocket, showing a suspiciously relaxed composure. „Mr. Stark I thought you‘d be at the Compound this week. That was what you said.“  
„And then I learned that your school will be here today. So I thought I‘d be here too and say hi.“  
Peters eyes widened and he held his breath because Tony Stark would never...  
„So, ‚Hi‘.“  
Peters first answer was none. He just gaped at the older man. This was too much. Did Tony Stark really just do that in front of everyone? A borderline Dad-Joke? Peter started to grab for straws.  
„And since you‘ve done that you can go now. Have to go now. Right? I‘m sure you have a lot to do. Right? No time for school kids. RIGHT, Mr. Stark?“  
Peter became more frantic with each question, seeing the grin on Tony's face broaden.  
„Oh, don’t worry. I have no appointments the whole day.“  
„No! Why?“ the teen looked for help, locking eyes with Happy for a second who shrugged in an almost sorry way.  
„Really? I really thought you‘d be more happy to see your old mentor. I feel hurt,“ gosh he even sounded hurt.  
„O… oh… oh. No. I mean… I mean of course but I didn‘t expect… I mean… Why?“  
There was no trying to talk around the fact that whatever was happening made no sense, so Peter came back to this first question. Answered with a shit eating grin.  
„Because I felt like I owe society that much. So, how about you introduce me to your friends?“  
Tony gave an encouraging nod to Peter and looked down at the other two teens at the table. MJ slowly stood up obviously not sure if she should smile or glare, while Ned jumped up so fast the stool almost fell over if Peter hadn‘t caught it.  
„This is Michelle Jones and this is Ned Leeds. I‘ve told you about them, Mr. Stark. They are also both in the decathlon team.“  
„Ah yes. Guy in the chair and female friend. Nice to finally meet you,“ he nodded to them which both of them returned, Michelle was now clearly amused while Ned was totally star struck.  
„Mr. Stark, if I may ask a question,“ MJ finally jumped in before Peter could remark anything else, a new dread creeping up on him. He silently shook his head, pleading towards MJ to not interact. She ignored him.  
And Tony of course nodded and replied: „Go ahead.“  
„In the Q & A that Miss Potts had so generous provided I asked her a question about the S. I. weapons that still circulate illegally. Part of her answer was that one of Iron-Man’s goals is to take care of that, parallel to the legal efforts. So, is it true that you sometimes go out, taking care‘ of weapon dealer and warlords?“  
Tony was actually silenced for a few seconds by this question.  
„That is a great question that I’m not going to answer.“ He then he looked over to Peter again. „That girl is brave and smart. She‘s a keeper, Parker.“  
„OH MY GOD!“ the teen threw his hands up not sure what to do with them, wishing for the ground to open and swallow him  
„Well, that is my cue to go. See you later!“ and with a wave and a smile Tony left, Happy hurrying after him, the rest of the room taking turns in watching Tony and Peter.  
„Holy shit, Parker! You actually do know Tony Stark!“ At least now Flash knew for sure. But Peter was too shocked to react until Ned carefully steered him back to his chair to sit him down.  
„Peter? Are you okay?“  
„No!“  
„Don‘t be like that, Parker. That was hilarious,“ MJ had also sat down and started to write in her notebook again.  
„No, it was not! That was super weird and embarrassing!“ Peter hid his face in his hands. „I‘m so sorry guys!“  
„It really was weird. But also amazing! Do you really talk about me to Mr. Stark?“ Ned continued.  
„Of course,“ with sad eyes Peter stared at his sandwich. His appetite was gone. „But… I always use your names. I‘m really sorry.“  
„It‘s really fine. It wasn‘t your fault,” Ned patted Peters back.  
„And I don‘t care,“ MJ just shrugged, continuing to noting things down.  
Peter sighed, ignoring all the whispers and finally picked up his phone from the table to read Peppers message.  
‘Peter, I just learned that Tony is in the house! He might come to the cafeteria! I write to you as a heads up!’  
‘Thank you, Miss Potts. But your message came too late. I still appreciate it.’  
A few seconds later his phone flashed with a new message.  
‚Oh. I‘m so sorry! What did he do?‘  
Peter smiled at that. Pepper really was great.  
‚Nothing. Really.‘  
‚Please tell me, Peter. It‘s not okay, if he embarrassed you.‘  
After staring at his phone for a few moments Peter started to type ‚It was fine‘ but then another message was sent to him.  
‚Mr. Parker, this is an order from your CEO!‘  
So he deleted his former message and told Pepper everything. He was an intern at Stark Industries after all, which made Pepper his boss and if she ordered him to tell her, there was nothing he could do. And if Tony got chewed out a bit it really wasn’t Peters fault.

Twenty minutes later lunch was over. Ned and Peter waved MJ goodbye for now while she wished them good luck. Peter felt like he could really need that because even Eileen gave him a weird look now. He had seen her frantically talk to the other guides.  
He had also seen the group of girls from before together with other people arguing, Flash being one of them.  
Peter just wanted to get it over with the day and then maybe ghost Mr. Stark for a few weeks.

\---

When they started to their next destination Peter and Ned stayed at the back of the tour again. It made it harder for the rest of the group to look at him.  
He could also see the girls from before scrolling and typing on their phones which helped Peter to maintain the feeling of dread. Not that that was a good thing.  
At least his best friend was super excited about Design and Research. It distracted Peter until they reached the Department and as soon as they entered he wanted to go back out. But his reaction was just too slow and the door shut behind him. He still tried to get out. Punched in his security code. Denied. He tried again. But the door did not open.  
„F.R.I.D.A.Y let me out!“  
„Sorry, Peter. I can‘t do that,“ the A.I. actually answered. She only answered to maybe half a dozen people.  
When he turned the whole group stared again Tony Stark included, with a shit eating grin, that changed into a very pleasant one as soon as everyone turned back to him.  
“Hey, Peter. Are you okay?”  
“M’fine,” with that he walked back to the group. Defeated. Heck, even Ned looked worried now. Eileen looked like she would pass out any moment.  
“All right!” Tony clapped his hands to gather everyone's attention. “We’re complete again. This is a surprise, isn’t it? I’ll be your guide through this department, since I’m kind of still the head of it. But I only got the job because of my talents and not my ‘connections’ to the CEO.”  
Everyone laughed but Peter who rolled his eyes. He had heard that joke and several variations of it, too often already.  
“Let’s get this started. Please feel free to ask any questions.”

A couple of hands immediately went up.

„Mr. Stark! What do we need to do to become an intern at Stark Industries? Like Peter?“ one of the boys asked, looking back at Peter.  
„It‘s only recently that we even consider giving High Schoolers the chance to become interns. And that is actually completely thanks to Parker. So far he is the only one and a special case. I guess you might be out of School before we really start with the official program. But you can always apply then or intern when when you‘re in college. But that is really more of a question for HR.“  
The boy nodded still thanking Tony profusely.  
Trying his best to look relaxed, Peter actually felt more tense, because of course the girls had watched him closely when the boy had asked. This became more and more a running of the gauntlet.

„All right, listen up! D&R is the best Department because this is where the magic happens. Not everything we produce is designed or even built as a prototype by me. Even though those are the least flawed and need the least revisions.“

„Did you build the Mark II here, Sir?“  
„Good question. The answer is no. I built it in my private workshop in Malibu. This here isn‘t even the real Headquarter of Stark Industries. That is in Malibu too. After we build Stark Tower, New York became the largest branch of S.I. in America. Have you guys been to the Production Department?“  
The kids agreed.  
„Then you‘ve seen how small it is. Even though you probably have no way to compare. Most production is still done in, you guessed it right, Malibu.“

Okay, that hasn‘t been that bad for now. It actually was rather informative and Tony showed his best behaviour. Not that Peter relaxed because of that. They continued to walk along a passage with rooms, built to look through. People in safety-attire and lab coats were working there.

„As you can see there are Labs, left and right. Some of them are Biochemics, others for Electroengineering, some are Computer labs for programming, some mixed and so on and so forth. A lot of scientific disciplines are needed and we cater to those needs.“  
A loud noise bordering on an explosion could be heard.  
„Point in case,“ it was impressive how Tonys voice didn’t change but he started to type on a display that was holographed out of his watch.  
„What was that?“ one of the girls asked, adding to the panicked mumbling.  
Before answering Tony turned to give a quick glance to Peter. Feeling weirdly proud Peter lightly shook his head, his spider senses giving him no clue of immediate danger.  
So, Tony shrugged: „No screaming, no alarm. Can‘t be bad. F.R.I. keep an eye on that.“  
“Got it, boss.”  
The kids laughed again, the fear falling off them.  
„Mr. Stark! Sir!“  
„Yes, a question?“  
This time it was the leader of the girl group and once more Peter felt dread rising.  
„Mr. Stark! I‘ve read online, and of course there is no proof for any of that,“ the girl talked fast like she was afraid that she would lose courage halfway through the question which only spiked Peters paranoia.“But, I read that you have an illegitimate son who might hide as your intern? Is there any truth to that?“  
Now Peter was sure he was going to have an out of body experience.

Tony just looked at the girl as if he had never heard anything like that before. Which might be true in that combination. Before he barked a laugh and smiled bright and charming: „Hah! That is fascinating. Haven’t heard that one in a long time. A son hiding as an intern! Let‘s continue and please only ask questions about the work from now on. Gossip is for tabloids.“  
The girl blanched a bit, obviously afraid she had overstepped boundaries but Tony still smiled.  
“Also, if I answer questions like that without checking with Pepper before, she will literally kill me!” He stopped for a second, dramatically furrowing his brows and hmmm-ing a bit before he then continued. “Don’t quote me on that or Pepper might or might not literally or figuratively kill me.”

Everyone laughed at that, the short moment of tension caused by the question gone again, thanks to that small joke.  
“Then let’s continue our little tour, shall we? There is still a lot to see for little science-fans like you are.”  
For a moment, Peter thought he was safe again and that this little rumor that could had just started, would have already died again, but of course it was his best friend who could never let things just go. So, too loud Ned whispered to himself: “He didn‘t deny it.“  
And really, Peter loved his best friend but right this moment he wanted to strangle him while a couple of other pupils, the group of girls among them, stared at Peter like he had just grown a second head and immediately started to whisper. AGAIN.

\---

„Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!“  
„It‘s fine, Ned,“ not sounding ‚fine‘ at all, not even to his own ears. „It‘s actually Mr. Starks fault for doing this tour and allowing questions.“  
They had continued their walk through the facility, Ned and Peter following behind, with Peter not really paying attention because he already knew the stuff his mentor was telling his schoolmates. Actually, this whole situation was really cool for them. It was just really shitty for Peter.  
“Ned, you really don’t need to stick with me.”  
“Really?” His best friend looked guilty but it was kind of hard to understand what Mr. Stark was talking about even for Peter who had super-hearing.  
“I know you want to listen to Mr. Stark and you’re here to learn something, so yeah I’ll be back here.”

They finally reached a small lab in which a quartet of people sat, constructing some kind of exoskeleton. Right now one of them was strapped into the fine net of struts, going around the human body.  
The one strapped in didn’t look too comfortable, while another one was checking his eyes, a third one was typing on the laptop and the fourth team member was screwing a joint.

“Now to one of the more interesting parts of our tour for you young future world-changer,” Tony walked into the lab, which made the team perk up.  
“Tony!!” The one woman who had checked on her peer had turned and her eyes widened a bit when she saw the teens outside of the lab, watching through the glass.  
“Hey, did you guys knew that today will be tour?! GUYS?!” The one in the contraption sounded almost panicked.  
“Shhh, it will be fine. Just relax. Let go, it will be over soon,” the one typing down on his Laptop was trying to soothe his colleague.  
“Don’t make it sound like I’m going to die!”  
“Calm down. You won’t. This is actually perfect because a test would be the next step anyway.” The woman who had fastened the joint stood up and smiled up to her colleague in the exoskeleton, while throwing the screwdriver in the air and catching it again.  
  
Tony just ignored the whole spectacle and turned to the kids.  
“So, this is a group of College students who interns for the D&R Department. A team of five from different fields get together and use the semester to bring their project to a prototype. So any questions for the Interns?”  
„What are your fields of study?“ a girl asked, looking very interested.  
The first woman let the lamp slide in the breast pocket of her coat and smiled brightly.  
„I‘m studying human biology specialising on narcotics and other drugs. I hope to become a real doctor one day,“ she winked at the group and then continued to introduce her colleagues.  
„Our Guinea Pig today is Shawn,“ the man in the contraception squeaked at that remark. „He just started with Material Management but also has a professional training as toolmaker. The Lady here,“ the woman snorted. „Is Jenn and she will soon finish her masters degree in Electrical Engineering. Her Hobbies include repairing cars. In the background you‘ll find Sevastian, or Sev for short. He‘s our Programmer with a soon to have Master Degree in Computer Science.“  
He just waved from behind his Monitor.  
„Our fifth member is on his way to bring coffee and cake to celebrate when our test is successful.”  
„And if not he‘ll call the mortician.“  
„Lev, stop that or Shawn will faint!“ the woman doing the talking still laughed, Shawn squeaked again. “Our fifth member is getting a degree in psychology. He is studying us while doing this project, with all the stress and how the work environment influences us. So you see, it really is a broad selection of fields.”

Peter was waiting a bit behind only casually listening in because he knew the project. He had helped for a week when Tony had no time for him and was out of town but had promised Peter that he would get some real intern experiences. It had been a fun week with the team and he would love to see them again but not with his schoolmates around.  
Even though that had probably been Tony's plan.  
And then again, rarely anything ever went according to plan.  
„Hey Pete! What are you doing here? How have you been? Why are you not in school? Wait, why are there so many kids here? Is that Mr. Stark? What is going on?“

Peter smiled at the tall man who had walked up to him, a tablet with coffee and cake in hand.  
„Hey Doug! I‘m here with my school for a field trip and yes, that is indeed Mr. Stark.“  
„Then why are you standing back here? Don‘t you want to meet the team again?“  
„Yeah, but not with an audience.“  
„Ah, what's the use of being here and not saying hello?“  
And with that the student walked over to the group of kids, greeting Mr. Stark and telling his colleagues that Peter was here.  
So, Peter followed. Slowly glancing up at Tony who looked very pleased and innocent.  
Ugh. Really.

The rest of the team welcomed Peter with excitement. They once more explained how together they created the suit and how Peter helped with the wiring and programming. His peers listened with some awe. The contraption was supposed to help people with weak bone structures to walk as well as help people who had to do heavy lifting on a regular basis like warehouse-worker or remover. The movement was supposed to be triggered by brain waves.  
For the experiment their teammate had been drugged to the point that he had problems to move his muscles.

„Okay, let‘s try it!“ the human biologist who had introduced herself as Kate shooed everyone out, so the kids could watch through the glass, while the rest of the team positioned themselves behind the laptop. Doug had put up a Camera to be able to study the reactions.  
Shawn looked very nervous.

„Go!“  
The first step looked quite tough. But after that it went smooth, Shawn started to walk, did a couple of dance moves and then picked up a heavy box without any struggle.  
After putting it down again the team started to cheer.  
The pupils also applauded excited. Even Tony clapped, nodding towards the group who hugged each other and then started to take care of their friend in the contraption.

„Okay, kids! Let‘s leave the students to celebration. They deserve it before the work continues.“ Tony then turned once more to the group: „Don‘t forget to write your protocols ASAP and add your ideas for further improvement.“  
„Yes, Tony!“  
Before everyone left Peter went in the lab and gave the team a high five wishing them further luck.  
It was clear that this had been a huge success and Peter had been a small part of it. Which was a great feeling.  
Not that he would admit it (especially not in front of Mr. Stark) but he was happy that he had been able to witness it.  
Still didn‘t make the embarrassment okay.

Tony had shown the way back to the departments exit, answering questions about old and new projects with a lot of patience, which honestly surprised Peter.

“Well, it’s time for you kids to continue your visit. You still have some more departments to inspect, I think.“  
The kids applauded and then started to leave.  
Peter had tried to slip out without being noticed but again…

„Kiddo! That wasn‘t so bad, was it?“  
„The jury is still out,“ Peter saw his group walking away, Ned waiting a few paces away. „I‘ll inform you about the outfall.“  
„Hey, at least no one will doubt your connection to me anymore.“  
That was true, but…  
„Yeah. Right. instead they might think I‘m your illegitimate son.“  
„Just deny it,“ Tony shrugged but he did seem a bit more tense after that comment.  
„Sure, because they are prone to believe me.“  
„Well, you need to go and I have a few more groups to show through D&R. See you soon, Parker.“  
With a wave of his hand Peter left jogging up to Ned who became more agitated the farther their group got. Before Peter even reached his best friend, he heard Tony shout again.  
„Wait! Did you snitch on me to Pepper?!“  
He just raced past Ned, who tried his best to keep up, smiling about this small win.

\---

Their next stop was Human Resources which was more of a short tour through the buero and then a presentation about the terms and conditions to become an intern or a full fledged employee.

It wasn‘t as interesting for Peter but the rest of the group was very interested and gladly took notes.  
Peter used that time to switch between panic and amusement. He got both messages from Pepper and Tony, who probably were also communicating with each other. While Tony was overdramatic, writing stuff along the lines of that he was stabbed in the back from his own intern, Pepper continued to tell Peter that he did nothing wrong.  
After the third round of message he excused himself to both and put the phone on silent into his bag, just in time to hear the last words of their presenter: „Well, if there aren‘t any more questions I thank you for your patience and I’ll send you away. I hope to see the lot of you someday again.“

Everyone applauded and grabbed their stuff, to pool out of the conference room, excitedly chatting.  
„Hey, Peter!“ another employee of HR called up to him and he waved back, watching his group coming to a halt, waiting for him.  
„Sorry for the bother. But I need to ask you and your aunt to finally fill out the forms I sent you. Otherwise we can‘t forward your payment to the college-fund, Mr. Stark created. “  
Peter paled by that. It was no ones business that this fund was a thing no matter how much Peter had protested. So, he lowered his voice when he answered: „Oh… Okay. I‘ll take care of it when I‘m home…“  
„Please do! It’s important and such a fund is a great help for a young person. I’m glad that Mr. Stark mentioned that you will be in house today.“  
The woman looked towards the group, smiling: „Sorry for the delay! This was important! Off you go!“ And with that the woman hushed Peter away to vanish into one of the smaller bureaus.  
Peter took a deep breath before he walked up to the group, ignoring all their stares, Eileen included, probably thinking what Ned flat out said: „ Dude, Mr. Stark implemented a fund for you?“  
„No! It was my aunt May's idea!“ that was at least partly true. Peter never wanted to be paid. Well, he wanted to be at the very beginning but not for being Spider-Man. Never for being Spider-Man. That just felt wrong. But May had been glad about the extra funds and the fact that Peters education would be secure. And even if Tony had told Peter again and again that it wasn‘t for being Spider-Man but for being an intern, it was still weird.  
„Well, let‘s continue. We still have two more departments to visit,“ Eileens irritated look had returned to its usual uplifting smile.  
Peter was very thankful that their guide was somewhat professional enough not to pry further.

\---

“Most things we do here in this branch of the Legal department is patent work. Many, much more ‚interesting‘ cases are outsourced to specialized law firms. Like copyright infringement of technology or the counterfy of the Avengers, distribution of rights or funds and yes, also the negotiation with our and other governments about the return of illegal Stark Technology. We still need for everyone a professional contact person who can talk to those law firms on eye level.”  
The woman flipped through a couple more slides showing different cases of infringement, clearly suppressing a yawn.  
“And in case anyone asks. No, we don’t sue many little firms that get inspired by Stark Industries, except it’s weapon manufacturing. It is actually pretty easy to obtain some of the blueprints and codes that are developed here. You just have to ask. Many snippets or basics are online available for free under a creative common license. Mr. Stark just dislikes it when anyone of his ideas are acquired illegally.”

„I‘m sure MJ asked that,“ Ned whispered to Peter who grinned and nodded.  
No one else would ask such a question.

„A big part of legal work is insurance coverage and protection. A lot of money is going to and coming from insurance companies. Nowadays a necessity, living in New York.“  
It was actually fun to watch the woman. She was bored and annoyed. No wonder. She had done this five times already. Today. Her voice was keeping a monotone pace, nearly lulling everyone to sleep.

„Insurance is actually quite fascinating. Having a Villain and Hero insurance can be very expensive, depending on where you live. Manhattan is given as expensive but Harlem and Hell's Kitchen fees have risen and Queens is on the rise too. New York is much more expensive now, then twelve years ago, before the attacks of New York.“  
She held her thought for a couple of seconds before she continued.  
„Well, I don‘t know if any of you want to study law, copyright or something but even our department is always looking for new and enthusiastic people to tackle upcoming challenges. Thank you for your patience!“

A slow, tired and confused applaus started. It was very unlikely that someone from their school would choose this as their career path but who knew? The same went with finances. But at least that was mathematical.

\---

“I know, economy is actually very different to math, which you probably know more about, but it is also kind of similar too. You work less with formulas, which you still do, and more with big data and probability theory. We keep an eye on the flow of money that is coming and going all over the world. We check in with NGOs and charities and foundations. We look out for our employees to get their monthly check and that they are able to cash them in. We work very close with HR and it’s always exciting,” compared to the legal department this woman was extremely excited about her work place. This time they were walking through the bureau again, seeing people concentrating on their screens. Some were looking at stock markets and other just at long columns of numbers that did not make sense at first glance.  
It did had some fascination to it.  
“One thing that is very special about our department is that it’s also our job to invest. And that is not only stock markets. We invest in art, estate, ideas. For example, when a young founder comes to S.I. to ask for capital it is for us to gather all information and to decide if the risk is small enough to go for it. In those cases we also closely work together with the legal department. We give purchases and marketing the money to get the materials they need. And we pay all the bills. I know everyone probably says that about their department but I really feel like here everything is merged.”

Peter looked around. It really seemed like that some of the kids started to consider to start a career in finance. The woman was that enthusiastic.  
“Do you think I should study economics?”  
“Ned, no!” Peter laughed. “You’re going to be a computer scientist or something.”  
“Yeah, you’re probably right. Guy in the chair and all. What about you?”  
Peter rarely thought about his future career. He somehow figured that he would be full-time Superhero one day. But he did need to earn money somehow.  
“Maybe chemistry or something.”  
“Does Mr. Stark have plans for you?”  
“What? No. Why?”  
How was it possible that his best friend always asked the worst questions?  
“Really? I would have guessed. He has a fund for you and stuff…”  
“Well, he wants me to go to MIT…”  
"Cool!" 

„Any more questions?“ Eileen let her voice rise over the casual murmur that had started. Everyone shook their head or answered no.  
„All right! Then, a round of applause for Miss Jones,“ the kids did as told. The woman actually bowed. „And this concludes your day at Stark Industries. I‘ll now bring you back down into the lobby. Thank you all for your patience. It was a pleasure.“  
The kids applauded again, this time for their guide and started their way to the exit.

\---

**epilogue:**

A few days later Peter was sitting on top of a skyscraper, looking out for evil doers. As planned he had ‚ghosted‘ Mr. Stark but had held contact with Happy and Pepper. But he ignored all attempts of contact from Tony. He just needed to figure a couple of things out. Also the following schooldays had been hell, everyone asked him all kind of things about Stark Industries and Tony Stark himself and even if he was actually Tony Starks child. Weekend came as a relief and Peter enjoyed being Spider-Man and being anonymous. As anonymous as a Superhero could be nowadays. But at least he wasn’t constantly asked about Iron Man… well not as much as as Peter.  
Ignoring Tony seemed like a good tactic at the moment. Because of anger. Or embarrassment.  
Well, he should have known that it would not work like that.

“I’m not used to being ghosted.”  
Peter had heard the repulsors long before Iron-Man landed. So, Peter could have easily avoided Tony but he had stayed seated on the railing of the building. If Tony came by himself, then he really wanted to talk to Peter. A couple of points for trying and it was the only reason he not had fled.  
Peter could feel Tony standing behind him, outside his suit.  
“I’m not ghosting you. I just... don’t have… time to… go to the lab and… idle around.”  
Good one Peter.  
“Good one, Parker. If it were about you being physically there but you’re not answering my texts. Texting is like second nature to kids your age. What is the real reason you’re avoiding me?”  
Peter sighed. There was no sense in denying it and it made sense to tell Tony so his mentor wouldn’t do it again. So, the teen stood up and removed his mask and turned around to face the adult.

“I’m still angry at you about what you had done at S.I., Mr. Stark. With all due respect.”  
“Why? It was hilarious.”  
„WHAT?! It was mean and embarrassing!“ With a dramatic gesture Peter opened his arms.  
„So?“  
„So? Why would you do that? And I mean everything! Ugh! School has been hell since then!“ This time Peters hands went right into his hair. Why was it so frustrating to talk to grown ups? May had been no real help either.  
„Why? To annoy you. A little bit,“ Tony actually shrugged.  
„I KNEW IT!“ Peter pointed an accusing finger to his mentor. With a bit of surprise Peter realised that Tony did not wear a business outfit under his suit but casual clothing.  
„But mostly because I wanted to meet your friends. You always talk about them, so I wanted to finally meet them. I can’t just show up at their place or invite them over. Or can I?“  
That made Peter shut up.  
„And I felt like it would finally shut all the kids up that don‘t believe you. Also you should be happy. I never got to visit Stark Industries with my schoolmates.“  
Oh. Yeah, okay.  
„I understand. But now they really wonder if I am your son. Why else should you give me an internship.“  
Tony grimaced at that.  
„Yeah. Pepper is still angry about that. She agrees that I handled it well enough but if I hadn‘t been there it wouldn‘t have happened etcetera. PR had to issue a clarification.“

The tabloids had went crazy. Someone must have given them a hint. Luckily Peters name wasn't dropped which had been a little miracle in itself. 

„I still don‘t regret it. Showing students the D&R was actually fun.“  
„It was still mean,“ but Peter wouldn’t back down.  
„Maybe. But I won‘t say sorry.“  
Typical. Where he didn‘t see fault, Tony wouldn‘t apologize. He was a strong-head like that. Also it was good for Peters classmates. Still. Well, he wouldn’t get much more from his Mentor, that much he had learned in his time with Tony. Maybe there was a little leverage after all.  
„Okay. But you have to do something for me! You have to sign Neds poster!“  
„I have to?“ Tony clearly sounded amused.  
„Yes! And you owe me a meal. I‘m very hungry and that is your fault!“  
„What? You‘re always hungry! How is that my fault?“  
„Because of you I lost my appetite and never finished my sandwich while at Stark Industries.“  
„That was days ago! … well, all right. Still not my fault. But lets get food into you. Growing Spiders need a lot of food, I heard.“  
„Awesome!“  
They both stood up, Peter dragging his mask back over his face.  
„There is a really good Pizza place around the corner. Third generation family business. Best Pizza ever!“  
„How do you know?“ Tony stepped back into his Iron-Man suit but kept the faceplate open.  
„I stopped a robbery there. They gave me pizza.“  
Together they walked to the border of the house.  
Tony seemed to think about it for a moment.  
„Ah, yes. I remember. Crazy dude with a knife holding a young mother hostage. You did great. Gave me almost a heart attack but well done.“  
“Maybe old people shouldn’t watch scary movies that almost give them heart attacks, Mr. Stark!” Peter laughed calculating the drop.  
“Wow. You’re grounded.”  
“What? That is not fair!” he looked up to his mentor once more. Eyes wide open.  
“And also impossible. I can’t ground you. You would explode of nervous energy. But no lab privileges for a week.”  
“That is also not fair!”  
With a mock-sad smile Tony looked down to Peter, answering with a “Boo-hoo!” before closing the faceplate.  
“Ugh! I’m gonna eat the most expensive pizza they have!” with that Peter stepped forward and started his free fall.  
Unseen Tony rolled his eyes and then started his repulsors to also descent: “And how much is that? 25 bucks? Wow, that will show me.”  
“Do you really think that it will be just one Pizza, Boss?” Friday quipped.  
Tony chuckled as an answer: “Well, I still won’t become poor because of Pete.”  
“Probably not, Boss.”

**Author's Note:**

> As said, I‘ve watched „Far From Home“ but only once so I don‘t remember much about all the other characters and I‘m sorry if anything is contradictorily.
> 
> I also want to add this came a long way. I started before Endgame… and this is completely different than anything I might had planned. But what else is new? I hope someone enjoys this 11k monster.
> 
> Also I decided to finally finish this because of the whole Sony-Disney debacle because honestly? I‘d rather have Sony stay strong. Disney is too big already and screw them. And Yes I‘m aware about the irony, talking about this on a fic about Stark Industries. But one thing is fiction. The other is reality.
> 
> And we, the fans, always have fanfiction after all. Congrats to Ao3 for their Hugo! Well done and thank you for your work!
> 
> Last but not least: I decided to keep it as one chapter but if anyone asks for me to split it, I'll do that.


End file.
